"You didn't specify. And yes, we did. Molly."
Matteo raises his eyebrows and looks at the boiling coffee. "Hm." He pauses. "I never would've thought he does drugs."
I roll my eyes at him. "Everybody does drugs."
"In theory, yes, but I think 'drugs are everywhere' would be more accurate. I just thought Isaac was always judgemental about this stuff because he plays football."
"Looks like you're the judgemental one, hm?"
I turn off the stove and push the pot away from the heated circle.
"Like you didn't judge him at first for being a football player."
I blink at him with an innocent look on my face. "No, I didn't."
"Yes, you did."
"Are you trying to prove a point here?"
Matteo lifts his hands up in defense. "If you're trying to lecture me, then at least I have to make sure you're right." He smirks, using my own arguments against me.
Okay, so he's an idiot. And this conversation doesn't make any sense. I take a good look at him and realize that he's also hungover and probably hasn't slept much from the drugs.
"My Uber's going to be here any minute. Thanks man." Isaac says and comes into the kitchen, fully dressed in his clothes from last night. He goes over to shake Matteo's hand and then kisses my temple.
Raisa enters the kitchen in Matteo's shirt and nothing else, smiling from ear to ear. She spots Matteo and I on the other side of the kitchen, turned towards each other, and her smile falters.
"Good morning."
I take a step back and fight the urge to roll my eyes. Honestly, chill. I know the reason I get annoyed when I see her feeling threatened by my presence is because I see my old self on her. A jealous person who went out of her way to prove her fears right.
Isaac says goodbye to her as well and the three of us look at each other as the front door closes shut. Raisa is looking at me in a knowing way, and her eyes are urging me to tell her what happened.
"Valentinaaa." She incredulously says and places a hand on her hip. "Tell me everything."
I shrug. "It was okay."
"He lasted ten minutes huh?"
I turn around and look for some coffee mugs, trying to think of a polite answer. I don't want to tell them it was average and mildly satisfying because it had nothing to do with Isaac and by now I know Raisa has a big mouth.
Matteo is also here, and I still haven't figured out whether I trust him yet. I know he's overheard some of my conversations with Isabella (maybe he wasn't even listening) and never once said anything about it. Mostly, he probably just doesn't care. I take out three coffee mugs and place them on the island counter, facing Raisa again.
"No, it wasn't that. It was nothing out of the ordinary, that's all. It was nice."
"Hm." Raisa trails off, looking at Matteo. "Do you have any spare clothes? My dress is...stained."
"First door on the right is my closet." Matteo tells her.
"I'm going to go take a shower. You want to join me?"
I look down at the coffee mugs, feeling embarrassed for some reason. Maybe for her, maybe for being here and feeling extra, and maybe for Matteo as well.
"No, I showered when I woke up." Matteo bluntly replies.
I don't look at Raisa's face as she says 'okay'.
"You could be nicer to her, you know." I tell him after I make sure she's out of earshot.
"Why would I be nicer than my usual self?"
I can't give him an answer, so I settle for pouring coffee into the mugs.
"You have to pour a little cold water over it, so the grounds go down." Matteo says and I understand maybe half of what he just told me.
"What?"
"The coffee, when you make it in a pot. If you don't want coffee grounds in the mug, you must pour cold water over it while it's still hot."
I notice that my blanket begins to slip so I set the pot down and grab it with both hands. My phone buzzes on the table and I check to see that Isaac just texted me he got home.
"Isaac texted me."
Who else is there to talk to about this anyway?
"Already?"
"Yes."
"He lives close by."
"Do you think it's a good or a bad sign?"
Matteo takes one of the filled coffee mugs and goes to sit down on a highchair by the island counter. "A sign for what?"
I watch him take out a pack of cigarettes and an ashtray from one of the drawers. "I don't know? For how my relationship with him is going to develop."
He shakes his head as he lights his cigarette. "You women think men think too much."
I raise my eyebrows. "How so?"
"You had sex and now you expect something between you to change."
"Something does change."
"No, it doesn't."
"We've seen each other naked, and orgasm. Well, in his case." I ironically add, getting a sudden urge to defend my opinion and becoming vengeful. "It's like a barrier to intimacy."
"For you, but for us, it's a way to release an urge."
Okay, we're getting way too theoretical here.
"I'm not saying we're something more because we had sex, I'm asking you if you think he thinks we're something more. Everybody says he's soft and I'm not looking for any relationship, but I had fun with him. And I don't want him to get clingy because he'll give me the ick, but if he gets too distant, I'll eventually regret it when I get bored."
It sounds selfish saying it out loud, but it's how I feel and I'm not sure Matteo understands anyway.
"I think you're overthinking it. Badly." He concludes and takes the first sip of his coffee, already halfway through his cigarette.
Don't you just love the European breakfast?
"Can I have a cigarette?" I ask and he holds the pack out to me.
I walk closer until I'm standing at the table next to him, one hand holding my mug and the other holding the blanket. He places the cigarette in my mouth because both my hands are occupied and lights it up.
"Thanks."
The coffee is a 5 out of 10 but it's the only coffee we have in this apartment, and I can't be bothered to wait for an order right now. I just need coffee.
"I know I overthink, but I do it less often now. I used to do it with my ex-boyfriend when I was younger."
"You should just see where it goes. Go with the flow."
Going with the flow is what all of my almost-friends-with-benefits have said to me when I tried to at least make a connection with them before we had sex, which always lead to nowhere. I feel sorry for Raisa. She probably heard the line from him too, but under different circumstances.
"Well, that's what I'm trying to do, but he texted me right after he got home. I don't want to have to talk to him." I whine, and I realize I'm being childish.
But it's one of those mornings when you wake up after having made plans while drunk and not wanting to follow through the next morning.
"Then don't." he says, as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.
"I don't want to be mean."
He laughs at that.
"What?"
"Saying no doesn't make you mean. It just saves you both time and effort."
We each smoke another cigarette in comfortable silence, me standing up and looking out the window at the city and him on his phone. Raisa eventually joins us, fully dressed in some of Matteo's clothes, saying she threw her dress in the washing machine.
"I'm going to go." I say, making a face at the coffee. It was horrible.
"Do you have milk and sugar?" Raisa asks.
"The coffee sucks." I warn her before I go back to my room to get dressed.
On the way to the hotel, I realize that even though the coffee was one of the worst I've ever drank, Matteo never complained.
***
Two days later, the first Covid case is announced in New York.
A month later, the world goes into lockdown, and everyone who can flies back to their home countries, because the entire university moves online.
Our dad tells us about the lockdown before it even happens, so he gets Adrik, Raisa, Aleksi and I on a plane back to Moscow.
***
The first few weeks of lockdown weren't bad but being in the same space as my family for so long without variety throughout the day can get frustrating. Isaac texts me every day, either something completely random or by sending me memes. He's also in Moscow, but due to lockdowns and everyone being on edge about spreading the virus, saying no to a date that could theoretically be possible (if you had a lot of money you could basically make the virus disappear) would not be considered mean.
However, I found myself enjoying the time I spent talking to Isaac, and soon enough Adrik was asking me who I was texting and why I was smiling. This went on until two months later, when they finally announced re-openings in New York and Isabella calls me.
"We have a problem."
"Elaborate."
"Vinnie and Pia's birthday bash in Ibiza is canceled for now. They said the whole island is closed down."
"I guess it makes sense. So where's the problem?"
"Pia is really sad about not getting a birthday this year." She says, and her tone lets me know that Pia is also there, listening in. I knew Isabella wasn't the type to whine about parties in the midst of a global pandemic, so I looked around my room for inspiration. Everything was pale pink and creamy soft, relaxing. All I can think of is suggesting that we postpone it or find another location.
"Postpone it for a month?" Isabella asks, putting words in my mouth so Pia could hear it for herself. Why she's calling me out of all people, I'll never know. "Alright, I'll see you then, hopefully."
She hangs up and texts me a few minutes later that Pia is being annoying about not doing something for her birthday and that her father said Spain should reopen in June. Plus, we had exams in two weeks, and nobody was prepared for anything because online courses were shit. The fact that it had rained non-stop for the past few days and it didn't look like it was going to stop didn't help with anyone's mood.
***
Four days before the Business Psychology exam, Matteo calls me.
"Hello?" I answer, happy to get a break from forcing myself to study.
"Come to Italy and let's take the exam together."
I drop my pen. "Excuse me?"
"The exam, on Thursday. It's at two."
"Why would I ever even consider doing that?"
"I can't pass this. I haven't even downloaded Zoom yet."
"It's an online exam. You can cheat you know."
"I wouldn't even know where to look, Valentina!"
"How is that my problem?" I provoke him, simply because I'm bored, and his desperation amuses me.
"I'll be very happy and relieved if I pass this exam."
"You know that's not a good enough reason for me to even think of flying to Italy during a pandemic."
I stand up from my desk and start walking around the room.
"Okay, let me try again. The flight is only four hours and I'll send the best private jet I can find to pick you up at nine on Thursday."
"Try again."
"You know the weather in Moscow is shit and lockdown sucks, and it's twenty-four degrees here and my room has a sea view."
I look out my window. The sky is gray and I can't even see the sun, and everything is muddy and wet.
"Did you actually g****e the weather in Moscow?"
"Yes, because I knew you wouldn't agree if you didn't get something out of it."
"I haven't agreed yet."
I hear him sighing at the other end. "Don't make me beg. At least leave me my dignity."
"Fine. I'll send you the address of the airport where you can land and you'll pick me up at one so I can be on time."
"Okay."
"Okay."
---
Hope you enjoy this one :) this is where their story really gets movingggg
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Ronnie
MatteoPalermo, Sicily, 2020 – (nearly) summerWhen Matteo decided to call Valentina and ask her to come take the exam together, he realized that begging would be his last option. When they were forced into lockdown in Italy, he didn't think about the fact that he would be spending more time with his father, and he could see first-hand how much work Matteo was putting into his studies.His father kept asking about exam dates and upcoming projects, and it all came down to Business Psychology, which was the only course where he didn't have someone who could help him pass.During the early hours of Thursday, May 28th, a private jet departed from their landing strip outside Palermo and set off towards Moscow, where it would pick up Valentina at 8am. By the time Matteo wakes up at 12:30, Valentina has already texted him that she's landing in 30 minutes.He jumps into the shower, already feeling pressured by tim. His parents have been out since yesterday and Matteo has no idea when t
Valentina opens her mouth to answer but Matteo's phone starts ringing. It's Isabella Facetiming him."Hi.""Are you done with your exam?" she asks in Italian. Matteo turns the camera to show Valentina. She waves. "Valentinaaa!" Isabella excitedly screams. "Are you in Sicily? This is perfect! Let's talk about Vinnie and Pia's birthday because for some reason she thinks I should be helping her with it.""Don't be mean." Matteo tells her in Italian, then switches to English. "Didn't she say she wanted to do something in Ibiza?""Yes, but everything is closed because of Covid. She was crying when she called."Matteo snorts and looks at Valentina, who is too focused on the sea to even listen to their conversation."I think I have an idea." Matteo says after thinking about it for a minute. "I know some guys on the island, I can arrange a yacht.""Yacht party?! She'll love that. I'll tell Vinnie too."At this, Valentina turns her head to look at the phone. "I'll call them now." Matte
They take Matteo's convertible, with Vinnie sitting in the passenger's seat holding a bag of wine bottles. Pia, Aurora, and Valentina are sitting in the back, already sharing the bottle from 2010. Marco and Eddie chose to stay home and play Fifa, and Isabella is waiting for them in front of the restaurant in the city.The drive takes just fifteen minutes because there's not even one car in sight, and the city feels different when it's deserted. The sun is setting behind them and the silence is eerie as Matteo parallel parks in front of their closed restaurant."It's weird, right? The silence." Aurora says in English, hopping out of the car without even opening the door, then grabs a bottle from Vinnie's bag."Shouldn't we at least be wearing masks?" Valentina asks, looking around."Don't be a loser." Pia laughs and shakes her head, taking the bottle from Aurora's hand. "There's no one around. Salute!" She raises the bottle and takes a long sip from it."Yes, that's the spirit!" A
Matteo takes out his driver's license and a 100 Euro bill before handing them over to the guy who spoke to him. Then he motions for Aurora to get out of the fountain."If you think this bribery will work then you're mistaken, Mr..." the officer trails off as he reads his name, voice breaking at the end. "Oh. Mr. Giudice?""Yes, and that 'blonde' is my little sister, Aurora." Matteo adds, pointing to her, before placing both of his hands in his pockets and finally relaxing.The other policeman checks his ID as well, looking at him then at the photo about five times before handing the ID back to him. The 100 Euro bill didn't make it back, of course."Have a good night." The first to talk smiles at him, before bowing his head and going back to the car.
ValentinaPalermo, Sicily 2020 – summer I wake up in an unfamiliar room with a dry mouth, completely disoriented. It takes me a few seconds to realize that the cream-colored ceiling and the matching drapes don't belong to my bedroom in Russia.Fragments of my dream come back to me as soon as I completely wake up. I try to shake them off, bury them somewhere deep in my brain where I'll never find them again. It's a new day, but the view I have of the trees doesn't look like rainy Moscow.Then I remember that I'm in Sicily, sleeping in a guest room in Matteo's house. I sit up and groan, rubbing my eyes and running my hands through my hair. I can still taste the wine from last night.My mom wasn't too happy about me being in Italy during the pandemic, but getting out of the house after two months feels good. My dad hasn't even read the messages I sent in the group yesterday.Raisa: you're in Palermo????"Uuugh." I say under my breath as I read the message she sent last night. While I
Raisa: I talked to ArianaRaisa: I'm flying out in an hour, see you there!!"¡Se deve autoinvitarsi, dille almeno di portare Aleksi!" For a moment I think Matteo's talking to me, but then I see him holding the phone up to his mouth to send voice memos. All I understood was 'autoinvite' and Aleksi, which tells me everything I need to know."Who are you talking to?" I ask.---See you on Wednesday !I hope you enjoy the book x"Vinnie. Your friend is coming too."I squint at him. "'My friend' is your friend too."Matteo pretends not to hear me as he lights another cigarette."And don't act like it's such a drag that she's coming. You know exactly why you want Alex there."He rolls his eyes. "Did I say anything? You're the one getting defensive."I don't bother telling him I heard it in his tone, the way he told Vinnie that Raisa invited herself in Italian, thinking I couldn't understand him. I know Spanish, or at least I understand it from all the telenovelas I used to watch and the
As if on cue, I hear Isabella calling my name. We meet by the door. She looks very happy and pleased with what she heard. It relaxes me enough to trust the process."Your turn."I take my seat in front of Pandora, who is busy shuffling the cards and looking at an unlit candle.
"No." I answer. "Plus, it's summer. I want to enjoy myself, have fun. I think we should hang out when I'm in Sicily with my family. Is Capo d'Orlando far away?""Are you kidding? It's not even that far! A two hour drive, tops." she excitedly says. "We'll definitely hang out. Maybe I can come over to your house, since I live in the city and I love the beach."